Tuesday, January 31, 2012

I've always been asking myself why do some people choose to become celebrities. Well, exactly the same question as why people write blogs hahaha. I mean, yeah,if you become a celebrity, you get famous, you get rich, you can probably travel to many places or buy anything you want but all of these have limits. You get the fame but you have no privacy. All your moves are sort of "monitored." You are expected to act in accordance to what/how people "want" to see you.
One of these limits is you have to watch EVERYTHING you say. Expressing comments that would attract hatred is a big NO NO in the business or else your career/reputation/confidence/image will suffer.

CAP of Teen Top on "daughter" issue
I am writing this entry because of the "recent" incident involving one member of a boy group. CAP of Teen Top uttered this line "I would hit her and keep her locked up" which angered many netizens.

Teen Top was a special guest on Mnet Wide Entertainment News 2 weeks ago. They were asked how they think they'd be 10 years from now. This was CAP's answer
“When I’m thirty I want to become a father. I will raise my children in
a cool way. I would give my son anything he wants and I will take care
of him so he can grow up. As for my daughter, it is a woman’s job to
stay at home. If she needed to be I would hit her and keep her locked up
at home.” (Jan.17th, 2012, Soompi)

Never did he know that his answer would irk so many Korean netizens and even international K-Pop fans who expressed their disappointments and dissatisfaction.
I've seen the show so if I were to tell you my opinion I'd like to offer two sides of the coin here. His mistake was his answer itself. He could have just made it like this "I would raise my children well or discipline them if I have too" but it went overboard when he tried to distinguish it by the child's gender.

On the other hand if you've seen the show, and fairly understands Korean language, it seems that he wanted to appear cool and funny at the same time. Cool in the sense that he wanted to "protect" girls because it's "dangerous" outside as what he said as his answer from how other members reacted to his answer.Another mistake, was when another member, jokingly, did a follow up saying "so you will just hit her in your house?" "your house is more dangerous then."

I have nothing against Teen Top. In fact I've already encountered them many times. They're very polite and seems really close to each other. But no matter how young these idols are, since they've entered this kind of profession, they are expected to be prepared for these kinds of issues.What is your opinion about this?

Some Super Junior Members on "Fat" Issues

This is quite an old issue but let me just take it out for reference for our topic here.

On 13th June, Yesung appeared on MBC’s “Quiz to Change the World”
and made a couple of comments that weren’t really that appropriate on
national television. When asked, “What’s the most unnattractive image
when a woman wears a mini-skirt?”, Yesung chose the “right” answer which
was “women who have fat legs.” The other answers were, “women who have
hairy legs” and “women who open their legs when sitting.” (Though some
men would disagree on the last one.)

He was then asked by the MC on why he had made that choice; Yesung
replied, “I think fat women are lazy.” Once he said that, singer Yang
Hee Eun asked him, “Are you saying that I’m lazy?” to which Yesung tried
to cover it up by saying he was only referring to young women. And if
he already wasn’t in enough hot water, the other guests chimed in, “So
you’re saying that Yang Hee Eun is old?” which Yesung added, “Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying She’s not fat… her body suits her.”(June 15th, 2009 Allkpop)
--------------------------- Shindong, has faced criticism for a comment he made during the broadcasting of MBC radio station Shim Shim Tapa.

On the 29th, a female listener revealed to the radio station that she
recently fought with her boyfriend because of her decision to go on a
diet. When she shared with him her diet plans for the new year, he told
her, “Don’t start if you’re only going to quit after a few days. Your body isn’t the type to change with a diet.”

Kim Shin Young, who co-hosts the radio station, stated, “To a girl, a negative comment about her weight is equivalent to asking for a punch.”
The Super Junior chubster then commented, “If someone had to lose
weight, I would tell that person to lose weight. Lose some weight, why
can’t you take care of yourself. When I say this, the person might
think, ‘Look who’s talking,’ but I would reply, ‘I’m a boy and you’re a
girl.‘”

To this, both Kim Shin Young and announcer Gu Eun Young retorted, “Why does gender matter in this situation? So girls have to be skinny and boys can be…” Taken aback by their remarks, Shindong quickly explained, “I’m just saying. Honestly, I would want the person that I love to be more pretty or more handsome.” (Jan. 30th, 2010, Allkpop)
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During the February 22nd broadcast of KBS 2FM “Super Junior’s Kiss the Radio”, the show featured a Kpop In China special, where Shinee’s Key filled in to replace Eunhyuk as a host DJ. Kang Mi Yeon, miss A’s Jia and Fei were also special guests on the show.
When the DJs asked Jia and Fei when their group would be making a
comeback, the two members responded that they were still in the midst of
preparations. After commenting that he believed there would be more
news after KBS 2drama Dream High ends, Leeteuk suddenly burst out, “Suzy needs to lose weight first!” (Feb. 26, 2011, Seoulbeats)

It seems that every year, 2009, 2010, 2011, Super Junior has something to say on this issue Before coming to Korea I never really mind my figure, I still don't haha, but since almost all the people around me talk about it, sometimes you will be forced to take some actions. At my school alone, there are 6 gyms for students to exercise because everybody wants the s-line, chocolate abs that celebrities have. Almost every subway station in Seoul, there 2-3 gyms around the vicinity, not to mention more numbers of gyms in every neighborhood.

Sad to say but what Yesung, Shindong and Leeteuk mentioned about being fat is very common in Korea. I myself heard it from many Korean friends. They said almost exactly the same line as they dislike fat girls because it means they're lazy. And if you ask them what about men? They would say it's ok for men to be a bit chubby just because they're men. And take note, it's not only male friends, many of my female Korean friends also think the same way.

Chiden Balmes, a Filipino studying in Korea bagged the Prize of Excellence in the Essay Writing Competition hosted by Japan Foreign Trade Council Inc. (JFTC).
Chiden himself "embodies" the three nation-states of the Northeast Asian region. A Filipino-Chinese who used to study in Beijing is now studying in Korea and at the same time interested in Japan's recovery.
Here's a news article written by the Philippine Embassy in Japan about him winning the title.

Filipino graduate student Chiden Balmes won the Prize of Excellence
for the Japan Foreign Trade Council Inc. (JFTC) Essay Competition 2011.
Balmes was among the top two entries from 186 submissions from 43
countries who joined the essay competition with the theme “Vision for a New Japan after 3.11.”

At the awarding ceremonies held last 06
January 2012 in Tokyo, Balmes won ¥200,000 for his essay titled “The
Making of New Innovative Japan: Road Map to Great Recovery.”

Balmes is currently taking a masters
course at the Catholic University of Korea. He also topped the 2007
batch of BS Public Administration of the University of the
Philippines-Diliman when he graduated magna cum laude.

Nicole Brown of Jamaica won the Grand Prize of ¥1 million for her essay titled “Japan v3.11-Reclaiming the Date.”

Balmes’ prize-winning essay earned
unanimous praise from JFTC Essay Competition selection committee members
for “the clear, structured way in which the author [Balmes] frames his
thoughts.” In his essay, the committee said that “he frames his argument
by saying that Japan needs to become an ‘innovation superpower’, and
compellingly outlines the potential Japan has in three areas:
Entrepreneurial Japan; Green Japan; and Global Japan. He concludes his
essay by positioning 3.11 as a major opportunity for Japan to the become
the innovation superpower he proposes.”

The full text of Balmes’ essay may be accessed at the website of the JFTC:

The Japan Foreign Trade Council, Inc.
(JFTC) was founded in June 1947 as a core private-sector organization in
the area of international trade with nationwide membership of private
companies and organizations such as trading companies and organizations,
manufacturers, financial institutions, shipping companies, and other
companies and organizations with interests in international trade.

The National Institute for International Education (NIIED) is now accepting applications for the 2012 Korean Government Scholarship Program for Graduate Studies. I'm also under the same scholarship.This scholarship is said to be the most prestigious scholarship in Korea for foreigners so why don't you give it a try!

-Medical Insurance : 20,000 won per month will be
provided (limited coverage).

-Special funding for scholars who are proficient in
the Korean language (TOPIK Level 5 or 6): 100,000 won per month (commencing
from the degree program)

Requirements

o
The applicant and his/her parents must have foreign citizenship.

o Applicants should be in good health, both mentally
and physically, to stay in Korea for an
extended period of time.

o
Applicants must be under 40 years of age as of Sep. 1st, 2012 (born
after Sep. 1st, 1972).

o
Applicants must hold a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree as of September 1, 2012.

o Applicants must maintain a grade point average (G.P.A.)
of at least 2.64 on a 4.0 scale, 2.80 on a 4. 3 scale, 2.91 on a 4.5 scale, or
grades/marks/score of 80% or higher from the previously attended institution.

o
Applicants who have Korean proficiency or English proficiency may be given
preference.

o
Applicants who apply for natural science and technology program may be given
preference.